'Judas pig' being used to eradicate feral hogs

Eric Berge, Beaumont Enterprise

By Eric Berger

Published 4:31 pm, Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Irving's trapping operations nabbed three feral hogs the Irving, Texas landfill on Thursday, March 17, 2011. Wild hogs aren't just a problem for Texas farmers and ranchers anymore. Texas Agriculture Commissioner Todd Staples says the pigs have gone to the city. Wildlife officials say the hogs are now plaguing urban areas because of changing habitats and prolific reproduction. Texas has up to 2 million of the hairy beasts, about half the nation's population. (AP Photo/The Dallas Morning News, Nathan Hunsinger)

Irving's trapping operations nabbed three feral hogs the Irving,...

A feral hog runs across the crawler way in front of space shuttle Atlantis at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2008. Atlantis is scheduled for a Thursday liftoff. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
Photo: John Raoux, STF

A feral hog runs across the crawler way in front of space shuttle...

This photo provided by the Texas A&M University Research and Extension Center shows feral hogs eating corn at a deer feeder near Overton, Texas, in 2004. Agricultural and wildlife officials fear the ample water and vegetation brought by unseasonably heavy rains this year could double from current state estimates of 2 million wild hogs. (AP Photo/Texas A&M University Research and Extension Center, Dr. Billy Higginbotham) ** NO SALES **
Photo: Dr. Billy Higinbotham, HO

This photo provided by the Texas A&M University Research and...

A feral pigs are seen on a rach near Mertzon, Texas, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2009. Under a bill filed by a Fort Worth lawmaker, recreational sportsmen would be allowed to join professional hunters like Lange to aerial-hunt feral hogs to help thin out their relentlessly multiplying and destructive ranks from the perch of a helicopter. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Photo: Eric Gay, STF

A feral pigs are seen on a rach near Mertzon, Texas, Wednesday,...

The shadow of Kyle Lange's helicopter hover over feral pigs near Mertzon, Texas, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2009. Under a legislation proposed by a Fort Worth lawmaker, recreational sportsmen would be allowed to join professional hunters like Lange to aerial-hunt feral hogs to help thin out their relentlessly multiplying and destructive ranks from the perch of a helicopter. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Photo: Eric Gay, STF

The shadow of Kyle Lange's helicopter hover over feral pigs near...

This undated image released by the Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge shows a feral hog at Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge in Virginia. Wild pigs whose blood lines likely date to Virginia's earliest white settlers are tearing up sensitive beach lands with their tusks and threatening rare plants at Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge. As a result, in December 2005, the state is considering ways to limit their numbers. (AP Photo/Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge via the Virginian-Pilot)
Photo: BACK BAY NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFU, MBR

This undated image released by the Back Bay National Wildlife...

Feral hogs run for cover as a Robinson R 22 helicopter, piloted by Mark Shimek, tries to get ahead of them during a demonstration Wednesday afternoon at the Pipkin Ranch in south Jefferson County. Helicopters are the latest tool to be used to hunt the hogs that have become a major problem across Texas. The Texas Legislature recently passed a bill that paves the way for commercial hunting of feral pigs from helicopters. Dave Ryan/The Enterprise
Photo: Dave Ryan

Feral hogs run for cover as a Robinson R 22 helicopter, piloted by...

Feral hogs run for cover as a Robinson R 22 helicopter, piloted by Mark Shimek, tries to get ahead of them during a demonstration Wednesday afternoon at the Pipkin Ranch in south Jefferson County. Helicopters are the latest tool to be used to hunt the hogs that have become a major problem across Texas. The Texas Legislature recently passed a bill that paves the way for commercial hunting of feral pigs from helicopters. Dave Ryan/The Enterprise
Photo: Dave Ryan

Feral hogs run for cover as a Robinson R 22 helicopter, piloted by...

Feral hogs run for cover as a Robinson R 22 helicopter, piloted by Mark Shimek, tries to get ahead of them during a demonstration Wednesday afternoon at the Pipkin Ranch in south Jefferson County. Helicopters are the latest tool to be used to hunt the hogs that have become a major problem across Texas. The Texas Legislature recently passed a bill that paves the way for commercial hunting of feral pigs from helicopters. Dave Ryan/The Enterprise
Photo: Dave Ryan

Feral hogs run for cover as a Robinson R 22 helicopter, piloted by...

Feral hogs run for cover as a Robinson R 22 helicopter, piloted by Mark Shimek, tries to get ahead of them during a demonstration Wednesday afternoon at the Pipkin Ranch in south Jefferson County. Helicopters are the latest tool to be used to hunt the hogs that have become a major problem across Texas. The Texas Legislature recently passed a bill that paves the way for commercial hunting of feral pigs from helicopters. Dave Ryan/The Enterprise
Photo: Dave Ryan

Feral hogs run for cover as a Robinson R 22 helicopter, piloted by...

Feral hogs are as adaptable and prolific as they are destructive. Wildlife managers estimate it would take annually removing two-thirds of the pig population, estimated to be 2.6 million swine, to stabilize the population. Houston Chronicle photo by Shannon Tompkins
Photo: Shannon Tompkins

Feral hogs are as adaptable and prolific as they are destructive....

Feral hogs runs through a farm in Atascosa County, Thursday, June 23, 2011. Joseph Meyers, of Flying J Services, is hired by farmers to eliminate the feral hog population and hunts them from his helicopter. JERRY LARA/glara@express-news.net
Photo: Jerry Lara, STAFF

Feral hogs runs through a farm in Atascosa County, Thursday, June...

Feral hogs are as adaptable and prolific as they are destructive. Wildlife managers estimate it would take annually removing two-thirds of the pig population, estimated to be 2.6 million swine, to stabilize the population. Houston Chronicle photo by Shannon Tompkins
Photo: Shannon Tompkins

Feral hogs are as adaptable and prolific as they are destructive....

Feral hogs are as adaptable and prolific as they are destructive. Wildlife managers estimate it would take annually removing two-thirds of the pig population, estimated to be 2.6 million swine, to stabilize the population. Houston Chronicle photo by Shannon Tompkins
Photo: Shannon Tompkins

Feral hogs are as adaptable and prolific as they are destructive....

Feral hogs are as adaptable and prolific as they are destructive. Wildlife managers estimate it would take annually removing two-thirds of the pig population, estimated to be 2.6 million swine, to stabilize the population. Houston Chronicle photo by Shannon Tompkins
Photo: Shannon Tompkins

In a recent report, Texas A&M scientists estimate there are about 2.5 million feral hogs in Texas.

But here is what is really interesting: If left unchecked, they found that the pig population will triple within five years. They are prolific, these pigs.

Of course the population will not be left unchecked. In 2010, an estimated 750,000 pigs were harvested, or 29 percent of the population. That sounds harsh, but it's really not.

The scientists estimate with such a harvest the feral hog population will still double every five years. Even a high harvest - 41 percent of the population, annually - will allow the wild pig population to actually grow by 12 percent a year.

An annual harvest rate of 66 percent is required to hold the feral hog population in check, the scientists believe.

Now, in recognition of the problem, the federal government is stepping up the fight. In New Mexico, the government is investing $1 million in federal funds on a yearlong pilot project aimed at eradicating the pigs and using what they learn there to keep them from gaining a foothold elsewhere, including Texas.

A small army of state and federal employees has been trained to stalk, trap and kill feral pigs, and techniques such as a Judas pig - which is fitted with a radio collar or microchip so it can be tracked as it looks for another group of pigs to hang out with after its family is killed.

Across the United States the wild pigs are responsible for an estimated $1.5 billion in damages each year and are considered to be very smart, learning from interactions with humans and not making the same mistakes twice.